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Spotsylvania supervisors talk tax rates Date published: 3/3/2010
BY DAN TELVOCK
Depending on how the state budget turns out, Spotsylvania County residents can expect a real estate tax rate in the range of 83 cents to 88 cents. Supervisors decided last night by a Every penny added to the real estate tax rate generates $1.2 million. County Administrator Doug Barnes asked supervisors to advertise the higher rate--two pennies more than what is in his proposed budget--because the county may see cuts of almost $3 million more from the state. Supervisors Hap Connors, Emmitt Marshall, Gary Skinner and Benjamin Pitts voted in favor and Supervisors Jerry Logan and T.C. Waddy voted against it. Supervisor Gary Jackson was absent. Connors advocated to advertise the 88-cent rate because there is too much uncertainty with the state budget. Logan wanted to advertise an equalized rate of 83 cents, which means the county would generate the same amount of revenue as it did this fiscal year. He said approving a higher rate may not have a huge impact on residents because their assessments either dropped or remained the same, but it will hurt local businesses. Commercial property assessments had a slight increase of less than 1 percent. Overall, property assessments dropped 23.45 percent. Supervisors told School Board members earlier during a joint work session that they are committed to giving them level funding of $113.8 million. But if the state does impose more cuts on localities, Logan said residents cannot blame the local government for having to make those cuts. "If this board thinks that we can replace every dollar that Richmond cuts out of our budget this year, we are sadly mistaken," he said. If supervisors were to approve an equalized tax rate of 83 cents, they would need to cut $3.5 million from the proposed budget. Those cuts likely would have to come from either the schools or public safety, supervisors said.
I will not stand for any increase or new taxes. Our high-school students sit around sleeping in class, watching full length Hollywood movies in class, making paper masks in History class, (High school students mind you!), and you tell me you can not find any place to cut the budget? If the only thing you can suggest is raising taxes or cutting teachers and essential services then we need better leaders and we need them now! I will not stand for any increase or new taxes. Will you?
You mean those SB meetings that produce propaganda for the Chairman and flyers sent home through the kids that whine about the lack of funding for all their new toys.
We get the same lip service from them as the rest of the politicians running this country. Then they do as they please any way.
If you are not happy with what you see then go to the school board meetings, go to the BOS meetings, actively participate in their committees, contact your elected officials and let your thoughts be known. I DO! But when only a handful of parents show up for a public hearing on school budget you don't get much attention. Your questions will never be answered to your satisfaction just in comments to newspaper articles.
to those that pay for it. If questions are not answered to the
satisfaction of those who pay - ultimately they will not
support higher taxes for schools and in fact will advocate for
cuts and in the end - BOS who insist on tax increases get
voted out of office and replaced by tax hawks who won't
listen to the schools but instead tell them to make do with
what they get.
This is why I say that a BOS that thinks any amt of tax
money is "owed" them is ultimately NOT GOOD for
education.
decisions and to justify those decisions to the people whose
money they are taking. They do not get to "decide" as you
say because ultimately the people who DO DECIDE are
those who pay the taxes and if they DECIDE to vote out
anyone who taxes too much (n their view) then how much
we spend on schools is NOT DECIDED by the school board.
I'm not sure why you continue to fail to understand this
reality.
The "it's none of your business" attitude actually HARMS
education if it upsets taxpayers - you know?
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